Phil Costa

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Retired C Phil Costa said he decided to retire because of the toll football has taken on his body. "Unfortunately, the day-to-day physical rigor of the NFL season has taken a toll on my body and has been a driving force behind my decision," Costa said.

The Indianapolis Colts offensive line is still in flux, with several players battling for key spots. OG Donald Thomas (knee), returning from a torn ACL, is expected to man one guard spot, while OGs Lance Louis and Hugh Thornton will battle for the other guard position. The most intriguing position may be center, where the team seems to want C Khaled Holmes to beat out recent addition Phil Costa for the starting role.

The Dallas Cowboys have options with C Phil Costa, with a decision possibly coming quickly. Costa is due a $500,000 bonus in the first week of the new league year. The team could trade Costa could trade or cut Costa, in the opinion of Calvin Watkins of ESPN Dallas.

Dallas Cowboys OG Mackenzy Bernadeau has been working at center during practice this week because the team may want to dress only seven linemen for game days with Bernadeau being the backup center. If the team decides to dress only seven linemen, C Phil Costa may not be active.

Dallas Cowboys C Travis Frederick reportedly received a $3.38 million signing bonus for his five-year contract. Frederick was the 31st overall pick in the NFL Draft this year. Frederick has run with the first-team offense all offseason and will compete with C Phil Costa. All signs point to Frederick starting in his rookie season.

Dallas Cowboys C Phil Costa said he understands that he will have to compete with C Travis Frederick for the starting center job this offseason but is ready for the competition. "I look at it that it's the NFL and every year there's going to be competition, and competition brings out the best in anyone," Costa said. "I met Travis and he seems like a great guy who's a good player and can help our team, help our offense get better. So I'm looking forward to it."

Dallas Cowboys executive vice president Stephen Jones said C Phil Costa and OG Ryan Cook will compete for starting offensive line jobs during training camp. Jones said the team will be starting the best five offensive linemen next season.

Updating a previous report, the Dallas Cowboys saved roughly $350,000 in salary cap space by signing C Phil Costa to a two-year contract worth roughly $2.7 million, according to a source. The new deal includes a $450,000 signing bonus and will only count $975,000 against the cap, rather than the $1.323 million contract he would have been tendered as a restricted free agent.

Dallas Cowboys C Phil Costa (ankle) underwent surgery in late December to repair ligament damage in his right ankle. Costa said he hopes to be ready for the start of organized team activities in the spring.

Dallas Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett said the team did not place C Phil Costa (ankle) on Injured Reserve earlier because they thought he could help in the last few weeks of the season. "We feel like he could have provided some presence for us toward the end of the year," Garrett said. "But when you start counting, how many weeks until we think he's back and how many weeks left in the season, you kind of do that math. We made that decision."